


With All My Heart

by miss_grey



Series: What We Do In The Dark [49]
Category: Band of Brothers
Genre: Angst, Blood and Injury, Demonic Possession, Demons, Graphic Depictions of Illness, Grief/Mourning, Hurt No Comfort, Hurt/Comfort, Loss of one's mother, M/M, Minor Character Death, Threats of Rape/Non-Con, Witchcraft, demon ron speirs, it gets a bit rough, vampire nix, witch gene
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-22
Updated: 2019-12-22
Packaged: 2021-02-26 02:22:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,046
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21895849
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/miss_grey/pseuds/miss_grey
Summary: “This is what you wanted, ain’t it?”  Gene spread his arms wide in invitation.  “I’m here.”
Relationships: Babe Heffron/Eugene Roe, Carwood Lipton/Ronald Speirs, Eugene Roe & Richard Winters, Lewis Nixon/Richard Winters
Series: What We Do In The Dark [49]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1366063
Comments: 38
Kudos: 75





	With All My Heart

**Author's Note:**

> Alright, folks, here we are.

Six Years Ago

_A cough. He’d heard it, intermittently, for the last few weeks. Every time he’d asked about it, though, he’d received the same, dismissive “It’s nothin’, chéri, don’t you worry about me.” But this time was different. Gene’s heart thumped loudly, hollowly, in his chest, and he could hear the echo of his blood pounding in his ears. His vision darkened around the edges, tunneling, to focus on the one real thing in the world: the handkerchief, tucked quickly into his mother’s pocket, speckled with blood. Gene’s hands shook, hard, and he curled them into fists to make them stop, but that felt wrong, so he loosened them again and they hung, limp, useless at his side. He raised his eyes to his mother’s face and she stared back at him—defiant, apologetic, understanding. He crumbled._

_“What is this?” He asked, voice hoarse, hardly sounding like his own at all. “What’s wrong? You told me you were fine.”_

_His mother sighed, shoulders slumping. “There’s nothin’ you can do, love.”_

_Gene’s shoulders stiffened. “You know that’s not true. I can help you.”_

_She smiled at him, then, sadly. “Sweetheart, no one can help me.”_

_He felt a surge of panic, then, at her sadness, her resignation. “I can! I can, mama. You know I can.”_

_She shook her head sadly. “This is the price we’ve all gotta pay, eventually. I paid it, willingly.” She took a deep breath and coughed, softly, wetly. “Come here, sweetheart.” She opened her arms to him and he did the only thing he could. He went to her and let her wrap him up like he was a child again. He laid his head upon her shoulder and she pet his hair, soothingly, like she had when he was a boy. “You can’t fix everything.” She murmured._

* * *

Now

The sun had barely dipped below the horizon when they piled into Nix’s blue convertible, top-up, and headed to Brooklyn, to the address Gene had been able to pinpoint on the atlas just a couple hours before. A quick Google search told them it was an abandoned warehouse near the old docks, decrepit, surrounded by others just like it. The perfect place for demons to hole up.

They’d spent the day doing what needed to be done. Nix and Dick had argued, back and forth, under their breath, hoping Gene couldn’t hear their fear and protestations. Speirs worried them. Gene worried them. They were worried. But Nix had transformed into something that Gene sort of recognized—a warrior, a fighter, something like the Dick Winters he’d first met. He was calmest of them all, urging Dick to prepare, because that was all they really could do. And so Dick took a trip to the local church and refilled his holy water. He draped his crucifix around his neck, shooting Nix an apologetic look as he did so. Gene watched the vampire wave off the concern with the hint of a smile. Dick stashed silver blades in his boots and at his belt. He tucked salt into his pockets and loaded a shotgun with rock salt, just in case. 

They’d learned a lot about demons in the last few days.

While they’d been busy preparing in their own way, Gene had been too. He’d settled in his temporary room, sitting against the headboard with his head bowed, focusing inward. Focusing on the deep well of strength that he knew existed within him. He reached as deep as he could, and as he felt wave after soft wave rise from those depths, he willed the power to spread through him, to charge the new tattoos he’d gotten inked into his skin. _Strength. Protection. Fortitude._

He prayed. Over and over again, the songs that his grandmother had sung, the ones his mother had chanted, the litany that Renee had taught him. The Prayer of St. Francis. 

Now he tipped his head back against the leather seat and stared out into the twilight, his eyes fixing on the car that Speirs had shown up with just before the sun went down—a black Mustang with black rims, an expensive thing that Gene hadn’t bothered to question.

The demon drove next to them and Gene couldn’t help the slightest quirk of a smile at his situation. He rode in a car driven by a vampire while a demon drove next to them, following Gene’s directions to go save the men they loved from other demons. He’d never thought to find himself here.

Now he only hoped he’d have the strength for what needed to be done, and the fortitude to see it through.

* * *

Six Years Ago

_He smacked his fists into the wall again, the pain bright and clear, giving him a fleeting sense of stability, peace. It faded just as quickly and he punched the wall again, felt his skin tear._

_“What are you doin?” His mother asked, coming around the corner with a stern look on her face. Gene raised his eyes and dropped his hands. “Let me see ‘em.” She commanded, so Gene raised his hands. His mother inspected the torn skin, already bruising, covered in blood. “What have you done to yourself, hon?” Gene tried to shrug it away, because how could he possibly explain? But his mother pressed, again. “Answer me.”_

_Gene sighed, his shoulders shuddering, hands and arms shaking as he met his mother’s eyes. “It’s the only thing that helps anymore. The only thing that makes me feel…calm again.”_

_Her lip trembled. “Why?”_

_He huffed, and felt that spike of energy go through him again, pushing him to move, to hit, to run, to DO SOMETHING. “I’m so angry, mama. So angry. I’ve never been so full a’ rage in my whole life, and I know it ain’t a good thing to feel, I know it’s wrong to carry this hate, but I can’t seem to get rid of it. There’s nowhere for it to go. There ain’t anyone to fight, because…”_

_His mother sighed, then, her shoulders slumping, and she took his hands in her own, and she murmured a soft prayer. Gene felt a tingle under his skin that told him the damage was already beginning to knit itself back together._

_“You shouldn’t do that.” Gene chided. “You should save yo’ strength.”_

_“And let my boy hurt instead? No, I don’t think so.”_

_The rage and fear and sadness rose up in him again, threatening to drown him, pull him under. “How is it that you can help others, but you can’t help yo’self? Why won’t you let me help you?!” He cried._

_His mother’s soft eyes held his as she held his hands. “I know you’re angry, chéri, and I know you want to fight now. But you aren’t a fighter, and there’s nothing to fight.”_

_“I will do whatever needs ta be done.” Gene insisted._

_“I know you will, love. I know you will. You always do.” She shook her head sadly. “But I wish you would understand me. Our people… we’re different from the rest. And you’re even more different, still. Our healin’…that comes from God. We_ ask _for this, when we pray to Him. We_ ask _for it. Ain’t nothin’ that comes free, sweetheart, you should know that by now. There’s always a price we gotta pay. Now, I’ve served the people of this parish for most a’ my life, and I understood that price and was willin’ to pay it every time I healed a wound or cured a sickness. It was a gift. But God’s callin’ me now, sweetheart. And it ain’t for you to fix. I know you want to, but this kinda pain…it’d take you down too, my love, and I can’t let that happen. I won’t. You understand?”_

* * *

Now

The traffic melted away until they and Speirs were the only two vehicles traveling down the deserted alleys between warehouses—most of the lights had been busted and the place was eerily quiet except for the sound of ships in the harbor and car horns some distance away. Gene sat up straight in the backseat and leaned forward just slightly, as the one they were looking for came into view. “That’s it,” he drawled, pointing ahead.

“Got it.” Nix said, pulling the car to the side and killing the engine. “Do we all remember the plan?” He asked.

Gene and Dick both nodded their heads.

“Let’s hear it.” Nix said.

“Our job is to get Babe and Lip out, as soon as the demons are out of them.” Dick said, grasping at the crucifix through his shirt. “No matter what.”

“Good.” Nix said. “Gene?”

“I’ve got Dike.”

“And I’ve got Cobb.” Ron growled, appearing at Nix’s window.

“And if shit hits the fan and we’ve gotta bail?”

“Your place.” Dick said. “In the city. We’ve got it.” He reached across to brush his hand across his lover’s. “Are you alright?”

Nix smiled tightly. “I’m good.” He glanced back to catch sight of Gene. “We ready?”

“Ready.”

* * *

Six Years Ago

_“You ain’t like the others, love.” His mother said, as she lay in her bed, patting his hand comfortingly as he sat beside her. It was close now. They both knew it, but neither could seem to say it. “You’ve always been special.”_

_“Ain’t nothin’ special ‘bout me, mama.” Gene said, bowing his head over her hands, whispering a prayer under his breath as he did so._

_“Your grandmama and me… we always did what we could for people. We learned and we prayed and we tried. But you, sweetheart… it’s not what you do. It’s who you are. You heal. I want you to remember that, alright. No matter how hard things get. Promise me you won’t let that darkness get you, love. Promise me you won’t forget.”_

_Gene promised, because he couldn’t do anything else._

_“Your greatest strength has always been your capacity to love, chérie. Don’t let this change you. Don’t fight it, sweetheart. Embrace it. Hold it close, if you must. But don’t regret it. Use love to heal yourself—my love, your grandmama’s, your own. All you gotta do is pray for it, sweetheart. Promise me.”_

_Gene promised._

_But when his mother passed away on a gray February day, leaving Gene alone in the world, he doubted he’d ever be able to love anyone ever again._

* * *

Now

Speirs peeled away from the group as they approached the warehouse, slipping around the side of the building. Dick’s shoulders tensed as they watched him stride away. He turned to Gene with narrowed eyes. “We sure about this?”

“It’s the only way.” Gene said, because it was true. He rolled his shoulders back, took a deep, centering breath, then marched into the warehouse, Dick and Nix flanking him. 

Square columns, dozens of them, cloaked in shadow, rose from the cement floor and disappeared into the darkness of the ceiling. Graffiti in a rainbow of neon colors sprawled against the brick and cement walls. Dust and debris covered the floor.

They made their way into the structure, cautiously, quietly. Their shoes scuffed against the dirty floor, creating a low, grating echo. The room was massive, dark, and appeared empty, but Gene knew better. He could _feel_ Dike close by, his blood thrumming with the nearness like a livewire.

“This is what you wanted, ain’t it?” Gene called, voice echoing hollowly. He spread his arms wide in invitation. “I’m here. So why don’t ya come on out?”

Dike spun lazily away from a column, then, his movements halting, awkward, as he approached. He smiled at them with Edward’s mouth. Gene’s eyes swept over that beloved face, searching, assessing, cataloguing. Dirty red hair. Smattering of freckles. Dark eyes, crinkled in a smile, but hollow inside. Soft lips, quirked nastily. “Not a scratch on him, just like I promised.” Dike said, acknowledging Gene’s attention. “You’re here early, though, sweetheart. I don’t remember inviting you yet.”

Gene shrugged. “Got impatient.”

“Hmmm,” the demon said, eyes raking Gene’s body. “Well I suppose I can make do. After all, you’re here now, just like you said.” He licked Edward’s lips and the motion was crude, disgusting. “You’re looking like a treat, _Gene._ You healed up _real_ nice, didn’t ya?” Gene shrugged, unwilling to give the demon anything else. Dick shifted uneasily at his back. “I can feel the power rolling off of you, too. It feels so fucking good. Can’t wait to try you on, baby.” Edward’s eyes shifted past Gene, now. “I see you brought friends, though. That wasn’t part of the deal.”

Gene waved the concern away. “They’re here to take Edward. They’ve got nothing to do with you.”

“Just you.”

Gene nodded. “That’s right. Just me.” He cast his gaze around. “Where’s Lipton?”

“Oh,” Dike said, fluttering Edward’s hand toward the darkness. “I’m sure he’s here somewhere or other.” Edward’s eyes narrowed and Gene tried to catch a glimpse of the man he loved in them, tried to search him out past the demon, but he couldn’t. Dike was too powerful for that. “You aren’t going to do something stupid, are you? I told you what I’d do to your soft, sweet boy if you tried it. It won’t cost me a thing to snap his neck and leave him to rot, you know.”

“No,” Gene said, raising his hands. “Ain’t nothin’ like that. I know when I’m beat.”

“Humans,” Dike snorted, rolling Edward’s eyes. “You’re all so pathetic. Love. It makes you weak. You’d do anything for this boy, wouldn’t you?”

“Yes,” Gene said, swallowing thickly. He felt the air grow heavy around him. “Yes, I would.”

“Tell your friends to take a step back.”

Gene flicked a glance over his shoulder and met Dick’s eyes. “Do it.” He said. Dick and Nix both retreated.

“I can still smell it on you, you know. You can’t fool me. I know you’ve still got that nasty little tattoo.” Dike ran Edward’s hands over his own chest, to rest just above his heart. “Right here, if I’m not mistaken. Can’t open a locked door, now can I?”

“Not a problem,” Gene drawled, pulling a small knife from his pocket. “I got a key.” He met Edward’s eyes and stared at the demon as he tugged his collar aside to reveal the tattoo. Then, before he could second guess himself, he drew the blade across the symbol and tossed the knife aside. He spread his arms wide and took a step toward the demon. Edward’s throat bobbed, his eyes fixed on Gene. “The door’s open,” Gene murmured. “Come on in.”

Dike grinned at him, Edward’s eyes flashing black, and the demon stepped forward, reaching for Gene, running Edward’s cold, clammy hands down Gene’s arms. The touch was wrong. Sick, possessive. “Finally,” the demon sighed, and then Edward’s head jerked back and a stream of black smoke streamed from his mouth; his body began to seize. The smoke swirled up, becoming larger, denser, and Edward screamed, a high-pitched, heart-rending thing. His eyes were white, rolled back, and blood leaked from his mouth and his nose as the smoke wrenched out of him. Gene reached back for him, fingers just barely brushing against his cold, pale skin, when suddenly he slammed back, like he’d been shot and then….

A burning vice gripped him, wrenched his jaws open, poured red-hot lava inside of his body and burned him up, burned him up. OH GOD, he was choking. SUFFOCATING! There was no air. No air. And no light. His eyes rolled back in his head and his whole body began to shake, and the world was torn away from him—first the sound went, Edward’s scream and his own, cut off abruptly—then his sight, as he was plunged into blackness. Then touch, his fingers tingling then going numb, as his body was no longer his own. Darkness, darkness. And a low, echoing laugh that reverberated all around him and made him shudder. Gene took one final breath as himself, and then he gave into the possession.

* * *

Ron stepped into the doorway, cutting off the only exit from the large, echoey room, empty except for the limping, battered body of Carwood Lipton, his lover. Cobb inhabited him, held him up on his feet like a puppet on strings—Ron could see the damage that his body had sustained. Broken fingers and so much blood. Balancing on an ankle that bent at a strange angle. Bruised face, bloody teeth. Ron took note of each and every scrape and bruise, every evidence of physical pain, and he tallied it. Cobb would pay for each and every infraction. He’d make sure of it. “Cobb.” He said, bracing a hand against the doorframe. The bastard was never going to leave this room again.

“Speirs,” the pissant demon purred, “good to see you. Me and your boy were getting lonely, just the two of us in here. We’ve had to keep each other company for so long already, you see.”

Ron cocked his head, studying the demon, whose form he could see despite the vessel he currently resided in. “Leave him.”

Cobb snorted, rolling his eyes, and it looked so wrong on Carwood’s features. Carwood was never so dismissive, could never be so cruel, not even when he was sure that he hated Ron. “And why in the Hell would I do that?”

“Because I wasn’t asking.”

“You think you’re so high and mighty, don’t you, _commander_? Always pushing the rest of us around, strolling in and out of Hell at your pleasure. Well fuck you, you have a weakness after all, you son of a bitch, and I’ve got him.”

Ron narrowed his eyes. “Leave him.”

“Oh no. When I go, I’m taking pure, sweet Lip with me.” He laughed, and the sound was wrong. It had none of Carwood’s melody. None of his kindness. “You’re gonna learn today that there’s a price for your insolence.” Cobb ran one of Carwood’s hands down his chest, his belly, and landed at his belt. “And I’m gonna have a hell of a good time teaching you.”

Ron grit his teeth. He wanted, so badly, to snatch the fucking prick from Carwood’s body, but knew he couldn’t. Not yet. Not without assessing the damage first. “Your quarrel is with me. Let him go.”

“Not a chance. I couldn’t beat you on my own. I’m not stupid. No, to get to you, we had to go the long way around.” He chuckled. “This sack of mewling misery is the only thing you’ve ever shown any feeling for. So I’m gonna destroy him, absolutely, and you too while I’m at it.” He grinned and Ron saw, again, the blood coating Carwood’s teeth, like he’d bit his own tongue many times. “He’s in here begging, right now.” Cobb murmured, drawing Carwood’s hands up his own sides, caressing. “He wants me to kill him, you know, to put him out of his misery. We’ve gotten to know each other really well, Lip and I.” He chuckled, and it was a nasty sound. Ron’s self-control strained, tugging at the leash. “ _Really well_ , if you know what I mean.” Cobb winked at him. “I wonder if he was ever this kinky with you. Your boy likes the dark stuff, doesn’t he?” Ron continued to stare at the demon, impassively, and began to count, backward from ten. Something Luz had mentioned. _Nine, eight, seven, six…._ “He’s got a message for you. Last words. Wanna hear ‘em?”

Ron flicked his eyes up to Carwood’s. “Yes.”

* * *

The black smoke rolled away and Gene found himself facing off against a creature without a solid form, a thing that was in constant motion, but still dark, murky, oily. They were in a small clearing, foggy, almost like the Bayou on some winter mornings. He could almost imagine the frogs and the crickets and the soft squelch of mud between his bare toes. He took a deep breath but his lungs didn’t expand and he realized they were _inside_ of him, now. Deeper than he’d ever been before, locked away from his physical form. In his soul or his head, or someplace else entirely. 

The demon shivered in pleasure and took a step forward. Gene moved in the other direction, and they began to circle one another. “You stupid bitch,” Dike laughed, “I can’t believe that worked. All it took to get you to open right up was that redheaded puppy and a few tears. You gave everything up. For nothing.”

Gene continued to circle, summoning all the power he had so that he imagined he could feel it in his feet, tingling in his fingers, even though he knew _this_ version of himself was formless.

“He’s dying, you know. Right out there, a foot from you, he’s dying and there’s not a thing you can do about it, because I won’t let you. I want you to feel that pain. I still owe you for New Orleans, _Gene.”_

Gene gulped, the echo of his pulse racing. “What did you to do him?” He demanded.

“Sweet _Edward,”_ the demon mocked, imitating Gene’s accent. “I ripped him apart on my way out. Oh yeah, I left him in pieces. He’ll be dead in a moment. No amount of healing—not even yours, sweetheart, will be enough to bring him back from that. And it’s going to be excruciating while he goes.”

“You lied,” Gene growled, and his hands tingled more. Sparks began in the mist, like little flashes of lightning. Dike glanced over his shadowy shoulder at the light show but dismissed it. 

“Of course I did. But you were stupid enough to give yourself up anyway. And what a handsome specimen you are. Even better on the inside. I only imagined how strong you are, but you’re even stronger than that, aren’t you?” The thing cackled. “You’re like a sporty little Porsche and I’m gonna have a good time riding you around. Maybe for _centuries._ Do you know what we can get up to, together?”

“I won’t let you hurt anyone else.” Gene promised.

“You don’t have a choice, you stupid pup. Your power belongs to me now, and you’re trapped here, with me, until I say so.” The thing snapped its shadowy fingers and ordered “Kick him.”

All of Gene’s muscles seized and he fought the urge to lash out, fought the need to kick Edward. “No,” Gene hissed, teeth gritted.

“Do it!” The demon snarled, and it approached once more. 

Gene jerked away from it. He clenched his fists and summoned his strength. Thunder rumbled, low, in the clearing, rolling and echoing to the flashes of lightning. The fog thickened at the borders, but rolled away from them. Gene’s hands continued to spark fiercely. “I won’t let you hurt anyone.” Gene repeated.

“You won’t protest for long.” Dike growled. “I’m gonna introduce you to pain you never even imagined before, baby. It’s gonna be exquisite torment. And you’re in for it until time no longer holds any meaning to you. How long do you think you can hold out for? An hour? A day? A week?”

The thunder rumbled loud enough to shake the place and the lightning flashed bright enough to light up the clearing, casting the oily shadow in blinding whiteness for a moment. The fog was tinged blue, now, and began to roll closer. “I’ll hold out as long as I need to,” Gene muttered. “How long do you think _you’ll_ last?”

The demon tipped its strange head back and laughed. The cold sound echoed back to them. “Baby boy, I admire your guts. I really do. But there’s no winning this one for you. You gave up. You invited me in. And I’m gonna set up shop until you’ve served your purpose and I’ve run you so thin you’re nothing but a husk. Then I’ll leave and do it all over again to some other love-struck fool.”

Gene cocked his head. “Leave?” He quirked a brow. “There ain’t no leavin’ for you, either. Not that way.”

The demon shivered and the blue fog began to twine itself around the creature’s legs. “What are you talking about? More hubris, witch?”

Gene concentrated and summoned an image of one of his most recent tattoos—a star with the flames burning inward, wreathed in blue. It appeared, glowing, in the space between the two of them, and Dike recoiled, hissing. “What is that?” The demon growled.

Gene shrugged. “One keeps you out. The other keeps you in. And this one is tied to my magic, demon, so there’s no leaving so long as I exist.” Gene curled his fists. “You wanted my magic? You got it.”

“No!” Dike roared, and he slammed against the shadowy walls of the clearing, but the fog rebuffed him, and grew more solid, flashing blue. “No! It’s impossible! It can’t be!” Lightning flashed and Gene smiled, grimly. “NO!!!!”

* * *

Carwood’s whole face changed: his eyes cleared and Ron saw hope, fear, pain, determination, and love shining out of them. His lips turned down in incredible pain and he clenched his jaw. There was no faking this—Ron knew the demon had been foolish enough to let the hunter out to speak to him. To deliver a devastating plea. To wreck Ron’s non-existent heart. To bring him to his knees.

“Carwood,” Ron said, voice shakier than he intended, as he reached out a trembling hand toward the only man he’d ever loved.

“Ron,” Carwood choked, voice raw. His eyes hardened and he grit his teeth. “Burn the son of a bitch out of me.”

“No!” Cobb shrieked, tossing Carwood back into the depths of his body and he reemerged, his face contorting in rage.

“Yes,” Ron hissed, taking the last step between them. This would hurt, it would be hell, it would be devastating, but Ron was happy, in this moment, to obey Carwood. Cobb must have seen his resolve, must have seen the dark pleasure in Ron’s eyes, because Carwood’s rolled back and his mouth opened wide, the pathetic demon ready to escape. Ron lunged forward and clapped a hand over Carwood’s mouth, keeping the thing inside, and then he slammed a palm against Carwood’s chest and he _let it burn._

Carwood shuddered in his arms, shrieking behind his hand, and Ron knew the filth was attempting to take his lover into oblivion with him, but Ron wouldn’t allow it. Ron burned and burned and burned, and he could _feel_ the lesser demon falling to ashes inside of his lover, could feel Carwood’s heartbeat banging against his chest, could feel the thin thread of his life-line pulsing, pulsing, and then fluttering, weakly.

Carwood’s feet collapsed under him and Ron caught him, finally lifting his hand from his mouth. Carwood gasped for breath, but he continued to shake. “I won’t let you,” Ron growled, “So don’t even think of it, Carwood.” He leaned forward, then, and softly, so softly, pressed his lips to Carwood’s and breathed his own vitality into the hunter.

* * *

“LET ME OUT!” Dike roared, slamming himself against the walls, but they didn’t bend, didn’t break. They were immovable, and the lighting was getting brighter.

“You wanted in,” Gene growled. “You got it.”

“I’m going to lay you to waste!” Dike growled, whirling around and striding across the space toward Gene. “I’m going to make you regret ever being born, you little worm!”

Gene set his shoulders, clenched his hands at his sides, and said: “Lord, make me an instrument of Your peace.”

Dike halted, mid-step, and he recoiled, his presence shuddering. “What are you doing? You can’t exorcise me, you dumb bitch! I’ll come back for you!”

Gene stared at him. “Where there is hatred, let me sow love. Where there is injury, pardon.”

“Stop it! Stop it! Didn’t you hear me?!” Dike roared.

Gene paused. “Not an exorcism.”

Dike laughed, shaky, full of rage and fear. “So this is your plan, then? Trap me and pray at me? What in the world do you think this will accomplish? I’m going to crush you like a bug.”

Gene frowned. “I told ya. You ain’t hurtin’ anyone ever again.”

Dike howled with laughter and the sound chilled the space they were in. “What do you think this’ll do, if not exorcise me? I’m a demon, witch. YOU CAN’T KILL ME!”

Gene’s eyes softened for just a moment, and his hands relaxed against his sides. “No,” he agreed. “I’ve never been a killer, and I won’t be one, now.” He took a deep, steadying breath to fortify himself. “I’m a healer.”

“What?” Dike snorted. “So that’s it? You’re not even gonna fight?”

“No,” Gene said, shaking his head. “A wise woman once told me that you can’t fight against somethin’ like this. It’s pointless. The best you can do is pray to God to help you heal it.” Gene cocked his head to the side, and he imagined for a moment that his mother stood with him. And his grandmother. And Renee too. “You’re a sickness, Dike. So I’m gonna pray to God to help me heal you. With all my heart.”

“You—”

“Lord, make me an instrument of Your peace. Where there is hatred, let me sow love. Where there is injury, pardon. Where there is doubt, faith. Where there is despair, hope. Where there is darkness, light. And where there is sadness, joy.”

“I SAID STOP!!!”

* * *

Babe hit the cement with a smack, blood dripping from his mouth and nose. “Oh my God!” Dick shouted as he leapt for the boy who had already begun to convulse by the time he reached him. Dick grasped him and moved him onto his side, but the kid’s eyes were rolled back in his head. He gurgled, bloody foam bubbling past his lips, and Dick knew that the demon had lied. He jerked his gaze to the right and through his panic sliced absolute dread. 

Gene stood, rigid, head thrown back, his hands balled into fists at his sides and his own body shook. A flicker of blue sparked all over his skin. “Gene!” Dick shouted, but there was no response. Gene was completely insensate and Dick knew that he wouldn’t be any help. As Gene battled that creature of Hell, his lover, who he’d done all of this for, lay on the cement, dying, and there wasn’t a damn thing Dick could do about it.

“Babe!” Dick shouted. “Hey, Babe, can you hear me?” Dick shook the boy softly, but there was nothing except a high pitched whining and more blood, pouring out of his mouth and choking him now. 

Dick’s own body began to shake and he felt a wave of desperation rise up in him. His voice tore out of his throat and he jerked his eyes up to Nix: the vampire stood, stunned, watching the chaos unfold around him. “Nix!” Dick screamed. “Help me, he’s dying! He’s dying!”

Suddenly, Nix was there, pushing Dick’s hands away from Babe and leaning over to assess the boy. His hands fluttered over him, checking for wounds, and when they withdrew, they were stained in blood. Nix raised his eyes to Dick’s, then, his pupils blown wide and his face tense, pale. “He’s going to die.” Nix said, voice quivering, from fear or thirst, Dick wasn’t sure.

Dick clenched his jaw. “We can’t let that happen.”

Nix stared at him, intently, and Dick felt like he was falling into his eyes, swallowed up by him. In that moment, they spoke without speaking, and Dick suddenly remembered everything they’d been through in the months since they’d met. _Nix, lying on the mattress surrounded by women. Nix, glancing at Dick covertly in that bar. Nix, panicked, on the phone demanding for Dick to be okay. Nix, arriving on Dick’s doorstep for the first time. Nix, in his uniform. Nix, straddling Dick, pressing him into the cool, clean grass at the farmhouse that seemed a whole world away now. Nix, pressing him up against the bathroom wall and kissing him. Nix, standing between Dick and a demon. Nix, surrendering to him. Nix, pushing Dick away rather than hurt him. Nix, laughing at a table with Kitty and Harry. Nix, his dark eyes tracking Dick’s hand on Gene’s arm. Nix, here. Always right here._

Nix’s dark eyes swam with…something…maybe fear or hope or love or a hundred years’ worth of demons. Nix held his gaze, and maybe Dick knew, then, what he was going to do, maybe he didn’t. All he knew is that Babe Heffron lay, broken and bleeding out on a cement floor in Brooklyn while Gene Roe battled the forces of Hell a few feet away, completely oblivious of what transpired around him. They breathed together, once, twice.

Then, still holding Dick’s gaze, Nix brushed his fingers over the side of Babe’s neck, leaned down, and sank his teeth into the boy’s throat.

* * *

Ron held Carwood’s body in his arms, rocking him as the man he loved sobbed himself back together again. Ron reached down and gently unhooked the witch’s charm from the hunter’s neck and crushed it in his hand before sprinkling the dust onto the floor. Elsewhere, in the depths of the warehouse, he could hear desperate screaming and could feel enough magic that it caused all the hair on his body to rise. 

Steady, he rose to his feet, lifting Carwood with him, and he marched out of the building. Just outside, he ran into Luz, who stood, white as a ghost, seemingly shocked by the flashes of blue lightning that sparked all around the massive building. “What the fuck is happening?” Luz hissed, rushing up to him. His hands reached, automatically, for Carwood, and Ron jerked the hunter out of his reach. The shifter glared up at him in reproach. “Lip!” He called, reaching again. “Lip!” He fixed his eyes on Ron. “What happened to him?”

“I burnt the demon out of him.”

“You son of a bitch!” Luz hissed, reaching for his friend again. Ron shoved the shifter aside and continued to march toward his stolen vehicle.

“Cobb thought to take Carwood with him on his way into nothingness, but I’ve healed him.”

“Then why isn’t he moving! What did you do?”

“I did what needed to be done. He’ll recover. He’s strong. Stronger than anyone else I’ve ever met.” Ron couldn’t help the soft smile that curled his lips. He reached the car and pried open the back door before kneeling inside and sliding Carwood onto the back seat, with a soft caress against the scar on his cheek. He withdrew regretfully. He turned to Luz, then. “Watch over him until I return.”

Brows furrowed in a mix of outrage and confusion, Luz demanded “Where are you going?!”

Ron rolled his shoulders and headed back toward the warehouse. “To hold up my end of the deal.”

* * *

Dike shrieked, his smokey form lit up from within by a nebula of blue lightning. 

Gene shook, but held, determined, as he continued to pray: “Grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console.” 

The light suffused the demon, enveloping him, embracing him.

“To be understood, as to understand.” Gene’s hands curled, tightly, as he fought to keep himself conscious. He could feel his body beginning to break, bent and twisted by the force of the fight taking place within him. 

The demon howled, the cries shaking the clearing, and Gene felt them reverberate within him. Would feel them forever, perhaps. “To be loved, as to love.” He gasped, falling to his knees. He gazed up at the demon, who was completely absorbed now, in the halo of bluish white light. The screaming had stopped, everything had stopped.

Silence fell and Gene stared at the sickness within him, and he remembered his mother’s words: _Your capacity to love has always been your greatest strength._

Vision beginning to flicker, Gene murmured “With all my heart.” The light grew blinding, impossible, ethereal. “With all my heart.”

The earth trembled, the warehouse shook, and the witch breathed out a mist of bluish white light that dissipated into the cold, stale air around him before his body abruptly dropped and the darkness finally took him.

**Author's Note:**

> Remember dear readers, comments are love! We're almost there. Please let me know what you thought about the chapter. Also, feel free to come say hi on tumblr. I'm @realhunterswearplaid.


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